Blood is Thicker Than
by Penthesilea1
Summary: A human girl raised by Noghri sets out on a quest to the far reaches of the galaxy to find the father she knows is still alive.
1. Mutiny

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Chapter One: Mutiny

There comes a time in every civilization, when something extraordinary happens that changes everything. Sometimes large, or seemingly insignificant, there is always that one something that is guaranteed to make an impact on the lives of individuals. In the case of the planet Honoghr, that something was the Empire. Darth Vader and the Emperor were in the final stages of their plan, after developing the biotechnology agent that would wither planet life and enslave the Nogrhi to them forever.

At the same time, there was another change that was smaller, unexpected and perhaps insignificant. A mistake occurred aboard one of the Star Destroyer's hanging in orbit above. A mutiny to be exact.

Janissa Hansen, a brilliant scientist and genetic manipulator, along with her husband Thel Hansen, were fed up with the Empire. Janissa had been hired for her skills in biotechnology. She hadn't signed on for mass genocide and conspiracy.

"Is the escape pod equipped with enough for all three of us?" asked Janissa.

She was holding an 18-month old baby girl.

"Yes, and I've made sure they won't detect us. I've given the computer a nasty virus, so the Empire will have more than us to worry about for the next little while," said Thel, and paused, looking at the baby.

"Is Senika alright? I hate the fact we're dragging her into this, but there isn't any other way," he said helplessly.

"She'll be fine. It'll be rough, but she's strong and quick. Like her father," Janissa assured with a smile, stroking the forehead of the sleeping girl.

"And smart and brave, like her mother," Thel added, grinning as well.

"We'd better hurry, there's only 45 seconds before the virus becomes active," Thel urged.

Janissa started to nod, but as she glanced over Thel's shoulder, her eyes went wide.

"Thel! Get down!" she screamed.

Thel wasn't fast enough, but the bolt didn't hit him. Instead, the killing shot intended for him missed and hit Janissa instead. Blood streaming from her forehead, she fell backwards into the open escape pod.

The ship's security forces had arrived.

"You fool!" shouted the lead officer, "You weren't supposed to kill _her_!"

But it was too late. The soldiers grabbed Thel, who began to kick and fight desperately as they tried to drag him away.

"After you get him under control, bring me the baby," said the head officer.

"NO!" Thel yelled and lunged toward the pod. He couldn't get into it, but he punched the button to eject the pod, which shut and released with a mechanical hiss.

Whatever the Imperials had in store for him, whatever they had done to his wife, they would never get their hands on his daughter.

***

While Thel Hansen awaited who knows what kind of punishment, torture, or gruesome death, the escape pod carrying the dead Janissa Hansen and her pitifully crying baby spiraled closer to the planet of Honoghr. It passed through the upper atmosphere and went crashing through the forest of Omnipar, sole woods of the Clean Land. It finally came to a battered stop near a tiny village of Noghri.

The young warrior, Icherab, was the first to approach it, drawn by the noises while hunting in the deep forests. Over the past year, his people had become accustomed to seeing starships, but never one so close.

_It seems unthreatening…_ he thought, _Most likely it is harmless…_

He pushed the largest button.

At the touch of his fingers, the door hissed open. His keen ears were alerted by the frantic wailing of a baby. A wave of sentimentality hit him as he investigated more closely and found that this being's guardian was dead. He scooped up the child, intending to carry it back to his village. The little girl waved her scrawny arms and fingers and kicked weakly with her legs. A mop of light brown hair framed a round, red-cheeked face. Tears ran from crystal blue eyes, flowing down to a fragile neck.

_She's so frail,_ he thought, _So delicate. Not fierce or dangerous at all._

He poked her nose curiously and was so startled when the tiny infant tried to bite him that he almost dropped her.

"Maybe not so frail," he chuckled to himself, "Perhaps we can make a warrior out of this one yet."

And with that he continued in the direction of his sister's house.


	2. Sixteen Years

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Chapter Two: Sixteen Years

"Sixteen years," Senika murmured, looking solemnly at the escape pod, now overgrown with jungle, in contemplation. The gargantuan trees of Omnipar surrounded her closely, with fog curling up from numerous streams and the sounds of wildlife chirping nearby. Foliage hung from branches so thickly that it was nearly impossible to walk through the woods without ending up covered in it.

Senika sat on a rock in front of the crash site, the place where she had come to rest sixteen years ago. Her long brown hair fell in two braids down to her feet and thoughtful blue eyes looked out from a gamin's face. It was a face that always looked distant, but was undeniably intense, the kind of gaze that one had to look away from if they were caught in it. She was dressed in a rough blue shirt belted with a brown cord and tan pants that ended right below the knee. A tiny necklace with a circle pendant, taken from her mother's body, hung loosely around her neck.

Picking up a rock and throwing it distractedly at the tomb of the escape pod, Senika sighed for the millionth time in that hour and continued to struggle with her thoughts.

"Sixteen years of living with a family that loves me, yet does not include me. Sixteen years of pretending to be something that I can never be. Sixteen years of frustration and tears over the things everyone but me can accomplish. Yet, sixteen years of happiness for the simplicity of my life…" Senika threw another rock, this time with more feeling, at the pod, and it rebounded with a sharp pinging sound.

She wasn't usually prone to philosophical musings, and there wasn't an official coming-of-age ceremony among Noghri females, or at least any one that she'd be participating in. But today was the anniversary of her Noghri birth and it pushed aside her normally carefree thoughts to focus on something deeper. No one knew when her real birthday was, their belief was that Senika's life had begun when she was adopted by her Noghri family.

Though Senika loved them, indeed, she loved them like the true family they'd become to her, she had memories of another family. She remembered, deep in her heart, a human male's face, leaning over hers, laughing joyously as he tickled her. It was just a figment, a glimmering in her forgotten consciousness, but it was there and it haunted her.

Senika propped her head in her hand and leaned her elbow against her bent knee. Angst was being continually aware of something wrong in your surrounding environment, but unable to clearly decipher it. Maybe if she sat here long enough, she could figure it out.

That face… it must be her human father. But what did it matter to her?

Senika's eyes widened and her hand dropped as she straightened in understanding.

Finding out would satisfy her curiosity, but more importantly, it would give her the evidence she needed that told her she belonged somewhere. Somewhere, she wasn't a step behind everyone else in everything and she could, for once, excel. Somewhere where everyone wasn't stronger, faster or more clever than her.

And as the thought dawned on her to discover that face, to trace it back and find it, Senika felt a surge of elation. She jumped to her feet gracefully, incredibly acrobatic for a human, but only mediocre among Noghri. A huge smile spread across her face as she leapt down from the boulder and started sprinting full-speed toward the village.

She had never felt an urge more pressing, more suffocating than that feeling. She would get off this planet somehow, she would seek out this person of her memories.

She would find her father.

***

__

Malika looked fondly onward from her sitting position in front of the tiny wooden hut, watching the lively young girl that ran towards her at full speed. The middle-aged Noghri female was shelling a pod-like vegetable just recently harvested, humming gaily to herself. She stopped her work and watched with approval the petite and wiry teenager that seemed to fly over the ground towards her, with long braids flying out in her wake. The smiling blue-eyed whirlwind came skidding to stop in front of her

"_Tawny-lok_," said Malika, using the Noghri word for "fair-haired", Senika's nickname, "Where were you just now?"

Senika grinned widely, puffing slightly and sprang off the ground into a handstand. She proceeded to walk around on her hands in front of Malika, casually putting all her weight on one arm, then the other. Her muscled tensed, then she pushed herself into the air, executing a flip and landing with a light thump.

"Nowhere _Yamai_," Senika said innocently, dusting off her hands, "I was only visiting the river."

Malika looked at her sternly, "Your clothes aren't wet."

Senika looked hurt, "I wasn't in the water yamai, just on the rocks."

Malika smiled, glad to know her little girl was still incapable of telling a lie. She just didn't have the face for it.

"I wish you wouldn't go into the woods so often. It's dangerous," Malika scolded lightly.

Senika's face shadowed, and her voice became wistful, "I wouldn't have to worry about it if I had weapons like the others."

Malika smiled inwardly. What a surprise Senika had in store tonight.

"Where is Kyliba?" Senika asked suddenly.

"Inside, he just got back from his walk," Malika said, resuming her vegetable shelling.

When she looked up again, Senika had disappeared, and the door of the cabin was clattering shut.

***

Senika's bare, callused feet treaded softly over the worn wooden floor. The whole cabin had been built out of the same light, golden wood. It had high ceilings and exposed rafters, which were hung with dried spices and vegetables. At the back of the cabin were two bedrooms. One was Malika's, the other belonged to Ichebar and his wife, Beytakilena. Most of the main room was taken up by the kitchen and dining area, with a small sitting area underneath the loft where Senika slept. To the right of the door when Senika came in was the bed where Kyliba slept.

Kyliba, the father of Malika and Ichebar was sipping tea at the large carved table, his walking stick leaning against his knee. He didn't look up as Senika came in, for his hearing was still perfect and he could tell her by her step.

She poured some tea for herself in a decorated clay mug and sat down at the seat across from him. Kyliba waited for her to speak, proud of his adopted grand-daughter for learning how to think about her words before voicing them aloud. It was a Noghri habit for sure.

"_Geedo_," she began, calling him 'grandfather' in Honoghran, "When you were off planet, protecting the great Emperor and Lord Vader, did you ever see a place where information about people was kept?"

"What do you mean Senika?" he asked patiently, a smile tugging at his mouth.

Her cupid's bow lips pursed in a thoughtful manner and her eyes narrowed as she tried to fit the words together. Her hands gestured as she explained.

"Like our generation tree, except… much, much bigger. Perhaps one that keeps track of their soldiers?"

Kyliba was puzzled, but he knew the answer to the question, "They have computers, Senika. There are huge computers that have information on many, many people, not just the Empire's soldiers. Think Senika, where is the center of the galaxy?"

He had taught her how to read and speak Basic from a young age, finding it pleasant to teach in his old age, but Senika never had a chance to practice the language so her Basic was limited. Along with those lessons had been stories of his travels in the galaxy while in the service of the Empire.

"Coruscant," Senika said suddenly as the answer came to her, "Right?"

Kyliba nodded paternally, "Yes, my Senika. And Coruscant is where the records are."

"How do I get there?" she asked anxiously, defiantly.

Kyliba looked up to see her eyes shining in determination and he felt an ache in his heart for having to dash her hopes.

"You can't go there, _twany-lok_. You could only go if you served the Empire and you cannot because you are not physically Noghri."

Senika's face twisted with anger and she dropped her head.

"That's always the case, isn't it?" she muttered bitterly.

Kyliba hated to see her upset and reached a gnarled hand across the table, resting it comfortingly on her shoulder.

"Senika, my dearest, you are Noghri in my heart," he said softly. And it was true, not just sympathetic condolences. In his eyes, Senika was Noghri from her delicate human toes to the golden-streaked brown hair crowning her head.

They were interrupted by the sound of footsteps outside that were unlike Malika's. Senika sprang from her chair and opened the door to tackle the person entering in a breath-restricting hug.

"Ichebar!" she cried delightedly, then more scoldingly, "You've been gone three days! You said it would only be two!"

Ichebar laughed and gave a Noghri grin. "It took me longer than I thought to attain your surprise."

Senika tilted her head in question. "My surprise?"

"This," explained Ichebar, pulling out a long roughly packaged object, covered with a sturdy hide cloth from his belt.

"I see Malika kept it a secret after all," he commented sardonically, seeing the puzzled expression on Senika's face. "Open it."

With curious glances at him, Senika undid the twine holding the hide to the object, slowing unraveling it, then discarding it in a pant pocket. She unfolded the cloth and a gasp escaped her as she saw the present. Her hand shaking, she held up the Noghri dagger in front of her, the opposite hand tracing the smooth carvings of the handle.

"Oh…" she said, awe-struck, "Oh, Ichebar… I… Thank-you. Thank-you so much. You don't know what this means to me."

Ichebar gave a wry smile, "You've earned it. Use it well."

Senika gave a little whoop of joy and rushed out the door, thrusting the dagger in the ancient patterns, completing the demonstration with kicks, hops and one-armed hand springs.

"Malika! Malika, look! Isn't this great!"

Kyliba chuckled from his stationary perch on his chair, happy to see her content again, but troubled by some dark foreboding trickling like ice water into his heart.


	3. To Her Cause

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Chapter Three: To Her Cause

The fire was beginning to die on the hearth as the sky of Honoghr blackened to its darkest shade outside the cozy house. The Noghri and Senika sat comfortably on cushions in front of the fireplace, with Ichebar and Kyliba telling old stories while Beytakilena and Malika wove Senika's hair into intricate braids. Everything seemed so splendidly content that Senika was hesitant to talk about her new ambition.

As the group finished laughing over some particular in Ichebar's story, Senika cleared her throat.

Four sets of Noghri eyes looked at her curiously and Senika almost lost her nerve. She didn't want to hurt them, to make it seem as if she was ungrateful. She loved them unconditionally, but she had to find out about her father.

"Yes Senika?" old Kyliba urged.

Senika swallowed. Why did they have to make it so hard with their kindness?

"I was… contemplating a lot today," she paused, unsure of how to go on, how to explain this need of hers, "I thought it would be respectful to visit my mother's grave. I sat on the rocks for a long time, trying to recall any memories of her."

There, she decided, it was best to just tell the truth, not make up elaborate stories. Truth leads to understanding, and understanding would help them see her need.

"I couldn't remember much," she admitted softly, giving a wry smile, "Just fragments, snatches of images and glimpses of faces. But with every image of my mother, there was an equal amount of images of a male human."

She paused again. The Noghri were watching her, listening with every facet of their attention. The silence was like a void that nearly stole her courage.

"I believe the human is my…" she couldn't get out the word. How could she? Every instinct inside of her rebelled and her voice couldn't make the sounds. It felt like something was squeezing her throat, restricting the noise from escaping and refusing to let her deny the essence of herself.

_Say it!_ Her mind screamed, _You have to say it!_

"My father," she blurted, nearly starting to cry, "I think he's still alive and I want to find him."

Understanding collected in Kyliba's eyes.

"Oh, Senika," he said in a barely audible voice, "That's why you wanted to know about the records."

If the silence had been a void before, now it was black hole, gobbling light, sound and all sensation. She looked at each face, searching their eyes for a reaction. Beytakilena's face quirked with something akin to curiosity, her small, cheerful eyes sparkling with a kind of mischievous light. Malika's eyes, as ever, showed only a calm resignation, the way they'd always been, always watching her, always observing in a quiet, accepting manner. It seemed her entire existence revolved around Senika and seeing how this quiet human girl fared in life.

Senika searched Ichebar's visage, his feelings being of the utmost importance to her. What would he think? What would he say? Would he feel hurt? Betrayed? Replaced? She couldn't bear to hurt him, all frustrations and humiliations she'd ever gone through had been for his approval. Now, her heart was lifted out of its confused misery as she saw something flicker in his mouth and in his deep, unfathomable eyes.

Pride.

He was proud of her.

Senika could have wept for joy, but she held on to control, waiting for their words.

It was the last figure's eyes that she could not read. Kyliba's face was only the way it usually looked; ageless and wise. Yet, in looking at him, an odd quiver spread through her body, like neurons fired all at once and she felt for some reason, trepidation.

"Well? Can I go to Coruscant? Please may I try?" Senika asked, her voice tight and nearly breaking.

Ichebar stood up from his chair, coming to stand in front of her. He stretched out his hand, and since she was only slightly lower than eye level with him while sitting, and affectionately touched her cheek.

"Senika, we have to think about this. We can't make the decision right away, and when we do, there will be many more decisions to make after," he said seriously, his gaze drilling into hers.

Senika nodded. That was to be expected. The worst part was over now, in her opinion.

Ichebar smiled, "But for now, sleep is most important. No one can think when they've lost sleep."

Senika gave each member of the family a light hug and scrambled up the ladder to her loft. She heard Beytakilena and Ichebar close the door to their room, then Malika drift off to hers. Either Kyliba didn't get up, or she fell asleep too fast, because it seemed to her that he stayed by the fire for the rest of the night, watching the embers slowly die.

***

_She dreams, suspended in a place of mist and darkness, where nothing is clear but everything seems familiar. She's been here before, she knows, but she doesn't understand when or where, why or how. She just knows, and she stretches out a hand in the darkness, demanding to know why she has been brought to this strange dimension._

She hears a voice calling out "Senika! Senika!" and she starts to move towards it, relieved to recognize the tone of Malika. Yet as her feet turn her in that direction, from the opposite way a foreign female voice calls out, "Senika! Senika!"

She whirls in the other bearing, then back, turning her head in a state of dire confusion. She doesn't know which voice to respond to, which voice is the right choice.

"Come this way! You are Senika Hansen and my only daughter!" calls the strange, unfamiliar voice.

"You are Senika Kyliba clan of Baikh'vair, and you know the true color of your blood," says the voice of Malika, stern and commanding, yet loving.

"Not Kyliba!" cries the other voice, "Hansen! Senika Hansen!"

"Her name was only Senika. Engraved on a tiny piece of metal, only Senika, not Hansen. That name does not belong to her."

"You are my daughter!" wails the voice, then it begins to fade slowly, the last words echoing like a chant, "You are my blood… my blood…"

Senika is torn, whipping her head in all directions, trying to decipher where each voice is coming from and which is real, or which is an illusion. 

But the voices are gone, leaving only a dreadful silence. 

She stands still in indecision, then gasps as she feels the cool waters lapping around her feet change from unpleasantly cold to sticky and warm. She looks down in fear and is nearly sick with revulsion as she sees the color of the water, a crimson and scarlet liquid that stretches into the mists surrounding her.

Blood.

She is standing in a sea of blood.

Out of the chilling darkness, a whisper brushes past her, softly repeating in her ear.

"You know the true color of your blood." 

Senika stirred underneath the warm blankets, contrasting sharply with the coldness sweeping through her, shaking her body. She blinked rapidly in the semi-darkness, breathing harshly. Through the little window above where she slept, she could see the sky was still dark, but beginning to lighten. 

The dark ghastliness of her dream slowly began to fade and she began to calm. It was only a bad dream after all, nothing she should be worried about. 

She reached for the pile of clothes beside her and slipped smooth, lithe legs into her tan pants and then donned a dark burgundy shirt. She rolled off the pad of blankets and stood, pulling her long, long hair out of the shirt where it had been caught. While loose, it fell to her ankles, a waterfall of light brown locks, and she grabbed a brush from the little table of her possessions. She combed it into two parts and then braided it from her forehead, down her head and continued, tying both braids with some extra string.

She shimmied down into the kitchen where Malika was cooking breakfast, something light and doughy by the smell of it.

"Senika," Malika said without turning around, "Ichebar is waiting for you outside. He's finishing reapplying the water-proof seal to the wood for me."

"Thank-you," replied Senika off-handedly before racing out the door.

The early morning was dark, but clear, with a hint of autumn as Senika stepped outside and around the corner to where she heard the sounds of Ichebar working. She gazed up at the sky, absorbed for the moment in the sight. Did stars still shine during the day? Could she see them if her eyes were like a Noghri's and not merely human? Or did the tiny pin-points of light find all faces equal and graced all of them only at night?

Ichebar was dipping a brush into a wooden bucket of sap from the golak tree, whistling slightly under his breath. All Noghri huts were made of the same sturdy wood coated with a particular tar to seal them tight against the elements.

"Sleep well, Senika?" Ichebar asked, putting down the brush and remaining in a standing position, while she sat cross-legged so that her eyes looked up to meet his. He always addressed her as Senika, never by a nickname or pet word. Yet the word always conveyed the same amount of calm, genuine affection as all the others' fussing and she found Ichebar's steady and controlled care the most reassuring thing in the universe.

She gave a tight smile, and her blue eyes were clouded in thought, "I had a strange dream."

Ichebar turned at this information, tilting his head in an expression of concern.

"It was disturbing, this dream?" he asked.

Senika nodded solemnly, "But it isn't important. I just want to forget about it."  
Ichebar regarded her knowingly, but let the matter rest.

"I was thinking over your proposal," he explained, "It can be done, with careful preparation and a well-thought out plan. First, you need to gather some of your friends. Take some that are trust-worthy and able, ones that won't give your purpose away. Second, we will travel to Nystao to borrow an Imperial transport. This will be the easy part, though I point out the danger there is still life threatening. Second, we will travel to Coruscant and there we will organize an infiltration mission. During the last term I served with the Empire, to a Grand Moff, I discovered the location of the Imperial master data computer. It will have the information we need, but it is very high security. It will tell us where your… human relation is, and we can then track him down. Do you understand?"

Senika nodded vigorously, her braids bobbing and her rose lips set in a determined expression.

Ichebar smiled, then turned back to his bucket.

Considering all the adventure and hope that lay spread out in such a neat and deceptively simple fashion before her, Senika's heart surged with excitement and she leaped up. She took a step away from the house, intending to set out looking for her friends to recruit immediately, but a word from Ichebar stopped her.

"Senika," he cautioned, giving her a stern glance, "Be careful when you talk to Relkivik. He has my eternal trust, but his mother does not."

"Yes, Ichebar," Senika agreed solemnly, instantly glad he had reminded her. Relkivik was one of her closest friends, one who'd saved her from a Stava in the forest when she was only five. He was light-tempered and pure-hearted, but his mother was the maitrakh of Baikh'vair, and she had a sour disposition. Chances were that if she caught hints of Senika's grand scheme, she would rat on them to the Imperials stationed at the Nystao garrison.

Despite the worry, however, Relkivik's hut was the first she visited.

He was practicing Stava, a form of martial arts developed by the Noghri and named after the monster that had nearly taken her life, when she approached his house. It was a luxurious building in comparison to some, situated next to the clan's _duhka _with a grassy lawn in front. Senika smiled cheerily when Relkivik turned around to greet her and ran the rest of the way to the yard. 

"Morning Senika," Relkivik greeted, "Did you come to spar a bit?"

Senika looked down at the new dagger attached to her belt, polished and unmarred in its newness. The sight couldn't help but bring a smile to her face.

"Some other time, yes," Senika said seriously, "But now I really have to talk to you."

Relkivik tilted his head in curiosity, "Ah, I see. I'm intrigued, go on."

"But before I begin," she said, "I must warn you that what I propose is extremely dangerous, and not very rewarding for anyone but me. If you do not want to join me, I understand, but please do not tell anyone about it."

"Solemn today, aren't we?" Relkivik commented bemusedly, "Don't worry Senika, I won't tell a soul."

Quenching the sudden onslaught of nervousness, Senika told her story for the second time, similar to the one she told the Noghri with the same heart felt detail. When she finished, she turned anxiously to face him.

"Ichebar says it can be done, but it will be risky, threatening death and dishonor."

Relkivik's dark eyes shone with a feverish light, "Are you joking? Of course I want to come. Not only do I want to help you, it would teach my mother a lesson."

Senika clamped her mouth shut of any comments except, "Thank-you Relkivik." She didn't understand his relationship with his mother, and she didn't wish to insult the maitrakh. Kyliba had taught her, among many things, that silence was often the best defense. Over the years, she'd learned when it was appropriate to talk freely and jovially, and when it was time for serious consideration before opening one's mouth.

"Who else is coming?" asked Relkivik, beginning to walk down the muddy road, an invitation for her to follow.

"I was pondering that myself. I'm not sure how many Ichebar has in mind. Perhaps we should consult with him first."

"Yes," Relkivik agreed, "But first tell me who you are thinking of taking."

"Vor'corkh, Sakhisakh, Pirakash, Takrevor… Those are the only definite choices I have so far."

"And Ichebar is coming?" he pressed as they walked along.

"He is leading it," Senika replied, then reiterated, "Well, he says I am leading it, but he will be advising me. Like I could ever lead anything."

Relkivik laughed. "That's hilarious Senika. I don't think you don't understand yourself."

"What do you mean by that?" she asked indignantly.

He smiled wryly, "I imagine you'll find out someday."

"Ha. You're a riot," Senika huffed sarcastically, "Come on, let's go get the others."

***

"We'll leave tomorrow night under the cover of darkness. We'll travel until noon the next day, then sleep for the afternoon. After, we'll continue on to Nystao, which we should reach by midnight. Yes Sakhisakh?

"How many hours will we sleep in the afternoon?"

Senika, who was briefing her friends around the fireplace later that day, answered promptly, "Four hours. In total, we will stop for five hours, with two people on watch for hour-long shifts.

Sakhisakh, a female Noghri Senika's age, considered pretty by her species, nodded in understanding and went back to listening attentively.

"When we reach Nystao, we will proceed to the spaceship docking ports, with Ichebar guiding the way. We will use Stokhli Spray Sticks and the element of surprise to overcome the guards. After that, we will continue on to Coruscant where we will formulate a new plan to enter the Imperial data base housing," Senika explained.

The group in front of her nodded. Senika glanced over them, glad for the team Ichebar and she had assembled. There were her friends, Vor'corkh, Sakhisakh, Pirakash, Takrevor, and Relkivik, as well as the two friends Ichebar had asked to fill their ranks, Mapeshka and Bakfulor. Finally, there was Beytakilena, who had refused to be left behind.

She felt guilty and proud at the same time, looking at the eager, adventurous faces of her friends. Dragging them into a rescue mission, one that was probably selfish and, even more likely, fruitless, was not something she enjoyed doing, but Ichebar would never let her go off by herself on such an escapade.

"You're all braver and better friends than I deserve," Senika said, looking at her feet, then up to face them, "But I sincerely thank-you."

Sakhisakh grinned widely at this and let loose a Noghri war cry, which the Senika and the others promptly joined in on.

"You'll get us through Senika," Relkivik said with a wide smile, "I know it."

With everything she was, Senika hoped what he predicted was true.


	4. Traitors to Their Kind

****

Chapter Four: Traitors to Their Kind

The next day was full of making the necessary preparations, the packing, the sharpening of weapons, the stretching of limbs for action, and settling one's mind for the task ahead. Senika scurried around the small hut, gathering things she needed and laying them out across her pallet of blankets in the loft.

She spread the materials across a soft fur hide and took stock of them, trying to decide if she had everything. Four sets of clothes were neatly folded into piles, with two pairs of tan pants, two pairs of brown leggings, a light blue long-sleeved shirt, a wine-coloured sweater, a cold-weather shirt in a deep shade of evergreen, and a t-shirt dyed light mauve. Some ointments and herb balms for medicine were packaged together in tiny pouches or little glass jars, and Senika's hairbrush, with a few bits of strings, were lumped together on the other side of the pallet. She stood looking at it, then sighed and shook her head. She was probably forgetting something and would only remember it later when they had left.

"_Twany-lok_?" called Malika from the main floor, "Are you finished? Come and eat dinner."

Senika turned eagerly and scrambled down the ladder. She sat at her spot at the end of the table, across from Kyliba with Ichebar and Beytakilena on the right side and Malika on the left side. Malika heaped a large serving of meaty stew onto her plate and placed a slice of _vrena_-bread beside it.

"Eat up," she smiled, before sitting down and serving herself.

Senika reflected that it may be the last meal she ate with such company in a long-time and the sudden feeling of sadness that flooded her heart surprised her. She looked at Malika and Kyliba, slurping and munching away in peace, and was struck by how she may never see this scene again. She realized that in hopes of finding her father, she had also sought a different kind of home. With the serene image in front of her, she was struck by how lucky she already was.

Malika noticed she'd stopped eating and gave her a stern look.

"Senika, I know you are excited, but if you don't eat your supper, you will have no energy for adventuring."

Senika started, shaking her head to rid herself of the sudden strange thoughts she'd been having. "I'm eating it, _Yamai_. I was just lost in daydreams."

Malika smiled kindly and touched Senika's nimble human hand briefly. "As long as you finish."

Senika nodded, and went back to the stew, remembering a time in her youth. When she had realized that she was growing bigger than the largest Noghri, she had stopped eating in hopes that she would stop growing as well. She'd become sick and thin, and Malika had been positively livid when she found out why Senika had been starving herself. She had repeated numerous times how it was normal for Senika to be that height for a human at her age and how she could care less what other Noghri looked like, or Senika's resemblance to them.

Senika shook her head at the memory and went on eating her stew.

Presently, the family finished eating and Senika cleared away the dishes, heating hot water on the fire and washing the utensils and plates in a metal tub. Kyliba helped by drying them.

"Kyliba?" Senika asked tentatively as they finished the dishes and went outside to tend the livestock kept for food. The sky was ablaze with red, orange and magenta, with the sun falling slowly towards the horizon, as if to set the world on fire. The air was chill and tinged with the smell of wood smoke from Noghri stoves and the thick, damp smell of the Omnipar forest.

"Yes Senika?" he asked as they walked around the side of the cabin to the tiny shed in the back where the white-feathered chookas were penned.

"Will you miss me while I'm gone?" she asked self-consciously, playing with the end of her braid. Tints of red, rust and gold showed through the dominant brown of her hair in the dying sun.

Kyliba chuckled to himself, "That depends, _twany-lok_."

"On what?"

"On whether you'll be coming back," he said with a solemn glance, bending down to pick up the chooka feed as they reached the pen.

"Why does that matter?" she asked curiously, also picking up some chooka feed and beginning to scatter it generously across the pen.

"Well," he replied, pausing to shoo a chooka that got too close to his clawed feet, "If you aren't planning on returning, then I will mourn you as if you had died, sparing myself years of painful waiting and baseless hope."

Senika looked up at him with imploring blue eyes, but absorbed this without reply.

"But, if you intend to return, then I will indeed miss you," Kyliba contended.

She thought about this for a moment, the confession bringing too many questions to mind than she had the strength to answer presently. It also brought up a flaw in her plan; she had focused too much on getting to Coruscant. What was her plan then? What would she do when she had retrieved the information that she had looked for for so long? She had thought before at dinner that her father might give her a home, but she had realized that she couldn't bear to leave this place permanently. It was all she'd known…

"I'm not sure Kyliba," she answered softly, shaking her head, "I couldn't bear for you not to miss me."

"Then you will come back?" he questioned calmly, not like an interrogator, but a friend seeking to help her understand her own problems.

"That depends," she said with an ironic smile, throwing his own words back at him.

"On what?" he asked, also smiling at the repetition.

She was silent for a moment, gazing at the sun, at the line of the trees against a darkening sky, at the cozy hut with smoke curling from the chimney, at the only home her memory told her of.

She faced him bravely, pressing her lips together in determination mixed with remorse.

"On if I find what I'm looking for."

Kyliba nodded slowly and rolled the sack of chooka feed closed before setting it down. She copied the motion and followed after him as he walked carefully on creaking, arthritic joints back to the house. He had his hand on the door latch, and was just about to open it when he turned slightly to regard her.

"You don't know what you're looking for Senika. I don't think you even can yet," he whispered softly, before entering the house.

Senika tilted her head in confusion, puzzled, and silently slipped through the door after him.

***

Malika stood outlined in the doorway of her house by the glow of the fireplace and watched three lithe, quiet figures slip away into the night. Senika turned around just before she was out of sight and waved frantically at her, her face shining with excitement.

Malika struggled to smile back, even though Senika wouldn't be able to see it with weak human eyes at this distance, because it seemed as though the action would bring luck to them and their expedition. She also tried to smile because it held back the wave of desolation and regret that she felt.

Noghri do not have the anatomy for tears or crying, but Malika knew these actions from watching Senika grow up. She was glad that she didn't have the capability for either, for she was sure that they would overcome her now.

It became harder and harder to maintain the smile as she observed Senika disappear from sight. The curious, pure-hearted little girl she'd raised from a baby was now a valiant young woman and letting her go hurt more than any pain she'd ever known. What was worse was that she wasn't sure if she would see her little girl again.

"Good-bye, Senika," she whispered into the velvet night, with only the silent stars to hear her.

"Good-bye, my daughter."

***

Two of Honoghr's three moons were in the sky, dim and small, but still beautifully rounded in spherical perfection and glowing, pearly and luminescent, against the serene black dome of night.

Senika was checking the contents of her backpack when she heard a dry twig rustle against some fallen leaves. Her head jerked up and she looked over her shoulder in the direction of the noise, but was relieved to see only Relkivk.

_"Sha'vah!"_ she whispered vehemently to her friend, standing as she did and hoisting her heavy pack onto her back. Relkivik gave a nonchalant shrug as he stepped up to the group.

The other members of the party had been gathered underneath the tree for nearly five minutes waiting for Relkivik, and Senika signaled through hand motions that they should get moving. The Noghri expressed their agreement and Senika smiled slightly before plunging into the forest.

Omnipar was the only forest left in the Clean Land and it protectively surrounded the village of Omniparek, which simply means, "by Omnipar." It was a deep and mysterious wood, with uncharted perils and untold dark regions where sunlight never reached the ground. It seemed to harbour a dislike for any creature that was not from its boundaries and few Noghri that were not from its village strayed into the reach of its ravenous branches.

Senika was not afraid of Omnipar or any of its hungry inhabitants, but she was vaguely nervous of leading her friends through it in the darkness and without any sort of path to guide her. The night was freezing, a warning of the winter approaching, and Senika was grateful for the extra clothes Malika had made her wear despite fervent protests.

She pushed aside a curtain of cobweb-like vines, the white fibers trailing eerily across her neck as she passed underneath them. The mud of the forest floor sucked at her soft hide boots, squelching slightly despite her efforts to be quiet. She could hardly see anything in the darkness, with the lights of the moons unable to penetrate the branches of the trees.

"How far until we can light one of the flares?" Senika whispered to Ichebar.

"Half an hour or so. Can you see well enough? Do you want me to take the lead?" Ichebar asked, concerned.

Of course, she did want him to lead, but it seemed very cowardly to be giving in already, so Senika shook her head.

"I can manage," she answered.

So Senika continued to lead the group through the ghastly depths of Omnipar, with each step carefully placed and the direction constantly being checked. She led them across freezing streams that soaked her pants up to the thigh, she slogged though brambles that snagged viciously at her hair and dug into her clothes, and she felt the knots of numerous tree roots scrape across her feet, hurting them despite her boots.

The going became easier when they reached a point far enough away from the village to light the compact flare lanterns. Senika tried not to look as relieved as she felt about being right about the path. Everything in this mission seemed to depend on timing.

The expedition was going splendidly until about an hour before dawn.

They came to a clearing, which was not really a clearing, but had fewer, thinner trees, as close to a clearing as it is possible to get in Omnipar. Pale moon-light filtered weakly through the tree branches, illuminating the first threat of the night, a chilling creature Senika had only heard of before in legends told beside the fire on cold winter nights.

The monster did not see them immediately as they came into its proximity. It was a mammalian quadruped called a _Vralok_, and it rose nearly twenty feet high, it's dark crimson fur lying loosely over masses of rippling muscles and deadly sinew. Vralok's preferred to live in moist, mild climates, and were nearly extinct as a result, for the Clean Land was farther from the equator than they preferred.

Senika recognized the Vralok immediately and crouched into a defensive position, not quite comprehending. She whirled to face Ichebar, who has come to a dead stop beside her.

"Is that what I think it is?" she asked in a harsh whisper, straining to keep the anxiety out of her voice.

"Yes, Senika," Ichebar replied slowly with a nod, "That is a Vralok."

She looked at the enormous beast, studying the razor claws on each of its four paws and the arm length front teeth lining its front jaws. She looked at the clearing, noticing the arrangement of the trees, seeing one large golak tree that had broken near the bottom and was leaning against another at a gentle forty-five degree angle. A plan began to form in her head.

"I'll need to kill it," she said, part declaration, part question and seeking Ichebar's advice.

"It will never let us pass through its territory," Ichebar affirmed, "And we cannot handle the delay."

Senika drew her dagger, preparing to draw blood with it for the first time.

"Bakfulor, Mapeshka, Takrevor, circle to the left. Vor'corkh, Sakhisakh, Pirakash, circle to right. Ichebar, Beytakilena, Relkivik, approach in the center. I need you all to distract it, so strike at its stomach, where it's vulnerable."

Senika stepped out into the clearing, making noise in the fallen leaves to catch the Vralok's attention. The beast started and swung its head around, glaring at her with sharp, predatory black eyes.

Senika glared at it in return, matching its ferocity passion for passion. She started to run towards it, her confident feet finding the right path over the rough ground. The Vralok ambled forward, hissing and roaring in annoyance, charging towards her companions. She tightened her hold on her dagger and swerved without warning to sprint brashly up the angled golak tree, running hard against the brutal angle till she reached the pinnacle, where the top of the fallen tree, and the top of the tree it had fallen against, met. She looked wildly around, the fierce war cries of her companions below sending her heart thumping wildly and her blood screaming through her vessels.

In the dark, she found it difficult to find what she sought, but nevertheless it was only a second before her fingers grasped a sturdy tree vine. She held her dagger in her teeth and gripped the leathery stem with both hands. Taking a deep breath, she pushed off from the branch she was standing on, swinging down towards the Vralok.

There was a cheer from Relkivik as she let go of the vine and landed on the creature's shifting back. She stumbled and nearly fell off from the erratic movement of the enraged beast, but her fists found anchorage in the Vralok's dark red hair. Swiftly, she clambered up its back to the neck, where she wrapped her legs tightly around its throat, strangling it. She wanted to use her dagger, to employ her shining, deadly gift to slit a fatal gash in its jugular, but her hands were busy holding her to the monster and she didn't dare let go.

"Keep holding on Senika!" she heard Ichebar shout at her.

_Yes, yes,_ she thought, _I have to hold on…_

But this action was becoming increasingly more difficult, as the beast shook and bucked, furiously trying to remove her, its strength and vehemence seeming to increase with Senika's continued efforts. Her head rattled, her vision became blurry, and the world appeared unable to stop spinning…

_Must hold on!_ Her mind screamed, _Can't let go!_

She was finding it hard to breathe, and she dizzily took one hand from its place to take her dagger out of her mouth, wanting desperately to just kill the thing and be done with. But by this time, she was beginning to faint, starting a spiraling descent into black unconsciousness.

_Lift the dagger…_

What her brain directed, her body could not comply with. Her leg muscles loosened, her eyes rolled back, and she began to slip.

Just when she thought the clash of wills was over, that she was finished, failed, a strong, deft arm pulled her up. She recognized the smell as Relkivik, holding her up with one arm, stabbing the Vralok in the brains with the other.

"Can't let go," she mumbled, and slumped.

She felt herself being lifted off the beast, jumping to the ground. Distantly, the sound of the monster hitting the forest floor carried to her ears. Her eyes still seemed unable to focus.

"Senika?" came Relkivik's worried voice, "Senika, are you alright?"

Things slowly sorted themselves out, the colours and images running apart to separate and make sense, like paint organizing itself into a picture on canvas.

"Senika, you killed the Vralok!" Relkivik said, shaking her gently, "You had suffocated it by the time I stabbed it! You saved our lives!"

"Mmmh?" was all that Senika could manage to say.

"Here," came Beytakilena's voice, "Give me some room."

A cold, sweet-smelling liquid was placed under her nostrils, so that when she inhaled a sharp, mint scent cleared her passages and her mind was instantly awake with an intense clarity.

Beytakilena sat leaning over her, an extremely concerned expression on her face and her nimble fingers delicately rubbing Senika's cheek.

"_Twany-lok?_ Better now?"

Senika coughed and sat up, brushing away the Noghri's hands. She shook her head and then grinned vivaciously.

"Phew," she said exuberantly, "What a ride."

Beytakilena chuckled, and Relkivik laughed out loud.

"If you are recovered," Ichebar said casually from close by, "We should continue our journey."

"Indeed," Senika agreed and rose steadily to her feet, "Let's continue."

They left the moon-lit clearing of the Vralok, relighting their lanterns and double-checking their direction before continuing on to Nystao. 


	5. To Distant Blazing Stars

****

Chapter Five: To Distant Blazing Stars

A short time after the encounter with the Vralok, the sky began to lighten and the trees abruptly ended, ending the portion of the trip through Omnipar and greeting fields of Nogrhi _bakt_, one of the few crops grown in the Clean Land. Here they paused to eat, and then to rest.

Senika found it hard to sleep, after she was done the first watch, with the warm sun overhead taking away some of the chill from the breeze, and the warm golden straw of the grains crop that was nearly ready to harvest. She lay on her back with her arms behind her head, gazing up at the brilliant blue sky that matched her eyes, watching the enormous cumulous clouds drift lazily by. Her muscles were not overly exerted from the long walk or the fight with the Vralok, having been strenuously exercised every day of her life with explorations, play-fights, household work, and her general energetic habits. To top it off, she felt mildly invigorated from the successful battle and for the upcoming one that evening.

At some point, however, sleep must have overcome her, because she found herself prodded awake by Sakhisakh as the sun was beginning to lower in the sky. With a yawn and a stretch she was alert again, chewing on a strip of smoked meat that Ichebar gave her for supper as the group continued their trek.

Nightfall found them a short ways from Nystao and they reached the interior of the city an hour or so earlier than they had planned. Ichebar, Bakfulor, and Mapeshka had all served terms with the Empire before, and knew the regulations formerly followed at the garrison.

They slipped through the backstreets of the city, avoiding being seen and quiet as vrelts. When they at last crept up to the back gates of the garrison, they discovered a new development, and paused for a moment, hesitating.

"Ichebar," Senika whispered, creeping up beside him, "You said there would be Noghri guarding the gates. Those are Imperial troops!"

"I realize that," he answered indignantly, "Which should make things much easier for us. They are only humans, so…"

Ichebar seemed to realize what he had been about to say and stopped abruptly.

"I'm sorry, Senika, you know I meant to say Imperials," he said quickly, looking at the sad, disappointed face, "You are on a much higher level than most humans."

"Yeah, yeah," she muttered, not in the mood for pity, "So the plan still persists? Jump them and then the Stokhli?"

"Try to do it quickly. It could be bad news if they send word to Coruscant ahead of us that some Noghri have stolen a ship. If it were Noghri we were fighting, they would not report the incident for the shame of it, but Imperials…"

He let the words hang and Senika nodded in agreement.

"Hustle people," she ordered, "Get on the roofs, knock 'em down, then steal their passes and get inside."

The Noghri nodded and split in different directions. Senika climbed deftly up the side of a nearby house, gave her self some running space, then sprinted forward and leaped over the gap between the roof of the garrison and the building.

She landed without a sound, and crouched there for a moment, regaining equilibrium. She narrowed her eyes in concentration, creeping across the metal shingles towards the edge of the roof. She found her Stokhli spray stick in her backpack and silently removed it. With the weapon clutched tightly in her hand, she peeked cautiously over the side.

The eerie white armor of the Imperial trooper shimmered slightly in the moonlight, a prime target for Senika's attack. She smiled vaguely, then launched gracefully into the air, executing a neat forward flip and aiming her feet to hit the soldier squarely in the back. The blow hit him precisely where she intended, and the soldier dropped with a sickening crunch.

"Next time," Senika muttered to herself, "Try to watch your back."

She smiled, then swiftly retrieved the soldier's pass card and nodded to the Noghri that were approaching the door.

She stepped up and swiped the access card, then spent a tense moment as the computer verified the identification before the door swished open.

The team scurried through the entrance and waited while Senika closed the door. Senika began to survey the area, searching for an appropriate getaway vehicle.

"We'll be wanting that ship over there in the middle Senika," Ichebar informed her, and she nodded in return.

"Will the Imperial security protocols pose any problem?" she asked him worriedly.

"If they do, Bakfulor can override them," answered Ichebar. Part of the reason he had suggested Bakfulor come on the expedition was because of his superior hacking skills, picked up during his time served with the Empire.

Keeping out of the spotlights within the landing bay, the group tread carefully towards the designated ship. Senika scrutinized it, taking in the gentle swells and deadly weapons' bulge of the frigate, and was mesmerized by the soft silver glow it seemed to bask it. The ship just felt right, Senika realized as she gazed thoughtfully at it.

They crept up to where the boarding ramp would lower and Bakfulor stepped forward work his magic. Senika hoped he knew what he was doing. Moments later, a beep confirmed success. They backed up as the ramp started to slowly open.

Everything seemed to be running smoothly, their hasty and unspecific plans adapting well to conditions, when they heard a gruff shout from behind them.

"What are you doing down there!?"

"Halt!"

"Infrared targeting system!"

__

Oh crap, Senika thought as she heard the last comment.

"Quick!" she pleaded to no one in particular, "Open!"

Relkivik and Pirakish leaped into the metal jaws, not wasting anytime. Senika would have done the same, but as a leader, she felt responsible to see that everyone was safe first. Even as the Noghri took turns, for the entrance space was still very small, Senika could hear a strange, unfamiliar, menacing noise that she guessed must be blaster bolts hitting the ground.

Ichebar scrambled in third last, leaving Senika and Sakhisakh dodging the bolts that were steadily becoming more frequent and more accurate.

"Hurry Sakhisa!"

But it was too late. Just as Senika's foot touched the ramp, she felt the quick movement, and then heard the moan of pain from beside her.

"Sakhisa!" she cried, whirling around to catching the Noghri girl.

"My leg!" Sahkisa breathed, "I didn't dodge soon enough!"

"Don't move it!" Senika ordered, holding up her friend and dragging her the last few feet into the safety of the ship.

"Close it now! Faster!" Senika screamed at Relkivik, who hurriedly complied.

"Are we getting out of here?" she asked him.

"Right away. But they can't start a ship cold, they have to run a check and…" Relkivik explained.

"Never mind that Relkivik! Just tell Beytakilena to come here!" Senika demanded. Some small part of her, pushed away for a time when one could afford to snivel over leadership duties and self-confidence, briefly wondered at her ability to shout like that.

Relkivik nodded once and bolted away at top speed, calling for Senika's adopted family member.

"Is it very bad?" she asked Sakhisakh in a gentler tone, "Let me see it."

Sakhisakh gingerly lifted her fingers slightly, so that Senika could see the ugly burnt wound in her friend's leg.

"Beytakilena!" Senika called desperately.

In answer, the Noghri woman appeared, opening her bag and sitting down at the same time, then hurriedly searching the contents of her apothecary for the proper ointment.

Senika watched in horrified fascination as Beytakilena first applied an ointment, then turned to Senika.

"Get me cold water, now!"

Nodding frantically, Senika back pedaled and began running down the corridor. It wasn't a pleasant way to get her first look at the ship, but as she searched for a tap or pump of some sort, she noted that the ship seemed very tidy, though not entirely clean. It had a lived-in sort of feel.

Slopping a quarter of the liquid onto the floor on the way back, Senika returned to pass a sterile metal bowl to Beytakilena just as a violent shuddering passed through the ship and the floor seemed to rock underneath her.

Senika jumped and landed in a tense crouch, looking around her alertly, waiting for the next assault, but none came. Instead, Relkivik ran into the corridor.

"We've taking off!" he announced gleefully, "We're going to hyperspace right away! Come see space Senika! Come see Honoghr!"

Senika raced after him to the cockpit of the ship, and came to a sudden stop as she saw the window. She had never seen anything quite so beautiful, or quite so mournful. Honoghr was barren, a light-green and brown wasteland where only kholm-grass grew. But space was magnificent, cold and pristine, as she saw stars that had never been so clear and the three moons of Honoghr in startling detail. She drew a sharp intake of breath as the ship swung in a different direction, giving her a view of the sun, so that she had to shield her eyes from the bright, glaring light. It was incredible, astounding, completely humbling and at the same time profoundly inspirational.

"Here," Relkivik urged, "Sit here Senika."

Senika sat down in the seat he pushed her gently into without taking her eyes from the window. Ichebar and Bakfulor worked away at the controls, and within seconds, her vision was dazzled again as all the stars seemed to elongate and converge into a twisting vortex which sucked them into its center.

Her perspective changed again as the vortex surrounded them and the white, purple, and black patterns began their wild dance about the ship, sheltering it for its long voyage to Coruscant.

***

The trip from Honoghr to Coruscant was a four-day journey, because much of it was through the uncharted and treacherous star regions between Honoghr and the Perlemian Trade Route. This series of jumps took nearly three days to accomplish, but as soon as they reached the Perlemian, they could make one fast jump to Coruscant.

Senika had gleaned this information, and any other scrap of knowledge about the ship, from Ichebar. The ship was a Corellian freighter, easily piloted by two people and inhabited by ten. It was a fast ship, Ichebar told her, though she couldn't compare it to anything, so she didn't know. The cabins were clean and tidy in military style, but the ship still had a strangely cozy feeling.

After Senika found that Sakhisakh would be fine, thanks to Beytakilena's nimble fingers and deft hands, she set about exploring more of the ship. The cockpit she'd already been introduced to, and was wary about lingering in because of the multitude of buttons and flickering lights to brush into accidentally. The ship was oval shaped, with two main hallways running from the cockpit to the ramp along the outsides. On the inner part, there was a large recreation room, with diagnostic boards, food-prep units and a large table with a holo-game board. There were four cabins with a refresher and two bunks apiece, and an extra fold out two incase of extra occupants. Near the back of the ship, Senika found, there were escape pods, and ladders leading to dorsal and bottom gun turrets.

Satisfied with her inspection, Senika retreated back to the quarters she was sharing with Sakhisakh, Pirakash, and Relkivik. Relkivik, who had been accompanying her on her explorations, trailed her into the room and promptly dove towards the left side bottom bunk.

"Hey!" Senika exclaimed, "I had dibs on that!"

"Not until you earn it!" Relkivik replied with a jovial smirk.

Senika cocked her head at him and then hefted herself easily to the bunk that had been pulled out of the wall above. The cabins were small, with two bunks (one fold-out and one regular) on either side in little alcoves, with cupboards beside each for storing possessions, and the door to the tiny refresher opposite the door used for entrance. The space in between the bunk alcoves was only a meter or so, which didn't leave much room for fighting or whatever Relkivik was insinuating.

Senika hung her head over the side of the bunk, looking down at Relkivik, with her two long braids swinging like pendulums that nearly touched the floor.

"Earn it how?" Senika asked curiously, smiling at her best friend.

"Duel, of course," answered Relkivik with a mischievous grin.

Senika began to see the plan he'd doubtlessly been forming in his head.

"You want to try out my dagger you mean," she said knowingly.

Relkivik nodded, the smirk not leaving his face.

Senika began to smirk as well. She coiled her body for a jump, then sprung from the bunk onto the floor, grabbing for Relkivik in the same motion. He dodged too quickly, as she knew he would, so she went for the dagger in her belt. With the handle solidly gripped, she jabbed forward, putting Relkivik on his guard.

Noghri daggers had never been intended for hunting animals. Most of the prey Noghri lived off of for millennia had been taken down with arrows, darts or through some sort of trickery, like a guffla jump, where a Noghri hunter would clothe himself in vralok furs and stand up wind from a herd grazing on a cliff. The herd would get a scent of the vralok furs and panic, running blindly towards the cliff, where they plummeted to their deaths. Other Noghri would be waiting at the bottom for this event, and would quickly proceed to chop up and preserve the meat. This method was able to keep entire clans fed through a winter in past generations.

The dagger therefore, was never a needed tool for getting food. Instead, it was used in warfare, tribe against tribe, clan against clan, Noghri against Noghri. The patterns and combinations it could be used for were an art passed down through centuries, and they were brutal, violent tactics designed to kill, not injure.

Senika and Relkivik, however, knew how to use their daggers in a less aggressive environment.

Smiling boldly, Senika tried cutting high, sweeping down from above, but Relkivik parried easily, brushing the blow aside. He slashed at Senika from the side, but she jumped, easily a meter straight up, and the blow hit only air. Senika crouched very low on landing, determined not to let Relkivik exploit her height somehow to his advantage. She back-flipped away from an upward jab, but found her back pressed uncomfortably against the cabin door.

She tried to swerve to the side of him to make up for her lapse, but Relkivik was too fast, and in a split second, the flat of his dagger was pressed against her throat. This was customarily the way to end a fight, and considered dishonorable if the loser pressed it further after the fact.

"Gotcha," Relkivik announced gleefully with a smile.

Senika glared at him and pursed her lips, letting out a frustrated breath.

"Aw, look at that pretty human pout," Relkivik teased, letting her free and sheathing his dagger in its scabbard.

The glare Senika gave him now could have melted the hull of a Star Destroyer, but Relkivik wasn't fazed. Senika slumped into a cross-legged sitting position against the door and Relkivik ruffled her hair with his hand.

"Hey," he said quietly, seeming to finally notice the angry expression on her face, "Don't worry. We'll rematch tomorrow night and you'll kick my butt."  
Senika gave a fractional, half-hearted smile, and nodded her head. It was the fact that Relkivik had beat her that made her depressed, it was the fact that he had done it in so little time. But perhaps she just wasn't up to her usual standards tonight. After all, Relkivik was expert, one of the best in Omnipar, and she was getting used to the feel of a dagger that wasn't Malika's, and not having Kyliba watching from the sidelines, shouting out advice merrily.

"Well," she said, "I guess I'll get some sleep for the rematch then."

She stood up and dusted off her pants, then grabbed a long grey nightshirt from her backpack and wearily went to the refresher. When she had changed and washed up, then wrapped the length of her braids around her head like a crown, she exited to find the room with lights on the lowest setting and Relkivik already laying on his stomach. She rolled her eyes and lifted herself up to the top bunk, making a comment about males and their hygiene habits for his benefit.

"I heard that!" he complained mildly.

"You were supposed to, silly," she retorted with a wry smile.

There was a pause as Relkivik digested this.

"Goodnight Senika," he said at last.

"Goodnight Relkivik."

***

The next day Sakhisakh woke to the sounds of Pirakash and Senika wrestling and laughing on the floor beside her bottom bunk. Relkivik's voice interjected fits of giggling and the straining breaths took to overpower an opponent.

She opened her eyes and sat up carefully, patting the bandages on her leg to ensure that her wound was not bleeding or the poultices coming loose. She and Pirakash had entered the night before to find Senika sleeping already and Relkivik lost in thought, with a slight atmosphere of brooding in the room. She had briefly wondered if the two had fought, and because of her naturally easygoing personality and tendency to be peacemaker, had asked if anything was wrong. When she couldn't get any answers out of Relkivik, she and Pirakash glanced at each other, shrugged, and made ready for bed.

With the fresh start of morning, however, any arguments had apparently evaporated. Her human friend wore dark brown pants and an evergreen top, while Pirakash was still in her rust colored night garments. And, Sahkisakh observed, Senika had nearly beat Pirakash at wrestling.

Still, it was only a matter of time until…

Pirakash coiled her remaining weight, pulling Senika's arms immobile, and rocked forward hard.

_Thump!_

With a victorious cry from Pirakash, Senika was dislodged and slammed into the wall.

"Agh!" Senika complained with a smile on her face, "You always use that on me! And there's no way to stop it!"

Pirakash grinned broadly. "Or maybe there is and I just haven't shown you yet."

"I'll learn, one day, just you watch," Senika mock-threatened, shaking a fist.

Relkivik laughed and gave Senika a hand up, and Sakhisakh was just opening her mouth to greet them a good-morning, when Beytakilena opened the door.

"Up at last are we? Lazy teenagers," she reprimanded cheerfully, "Come along, breakfast is ready."

The troupe followed her from the room and dug into the spread of fruits, bread, and cheeses with relish, devouring the meal as only hungry teenagers could. Sakhisa continued to be amazed at the technology the ship boasted, though Pirakash told her it was standard in a lot of the galaxy and even in Nystao. Living in Omnipar, she had never seen things run by electricity or engines, or had a primitive robot that did the dishes for her. It was certainly an interesting experience.

The next few days on the voyage to Coruscant began to follow a pattern. Sakhisa, Pirakash, Takrevor, Vor'corkh, Relkivik and Senika divided their time between practing stava, sparring, relaxing and reading up information on Coruscant and the Core Worlds that the main computer offered them.

Relkivik and Senika, inseparable as always, found the most interesting thing for entertainment was the ship itself, as Ichebar and Bakfulor would give long discourses in the operation of the ship before shooing them off. When the grown-ups weren't in the cockpit, Senika and Relkivik occupied it, learning its secrets and figuring out for themselves how the vessel was run. Gradually, they became confident that they could fly the ship themselves.

Sakhisa, personally, was timid about the ship. She lay awake in the dark the second night on the ship, when she wasn't so incredibly tired, and found it impossible to fall asleep. In Omnipar, the nights were silent and still, so quiet that you could hear someone two houses away coughing if it was loud enough. On the ship, however, the engines hummed constantly, and to her imagination, the sound seemed to increase from a gentle hum to a malicious roar, seeking to grow and grow till it shook the ship apart and scattered them to the coldness of space.

Maybe it was the anxiety of Sakhisa and Takrevor that Ichebar made the decision to stop in Taanab on the last day of their voyage. Of course, his explanation of stopping for supplies could have been true as well, or maybe he just wanted them to see a regular-sized planet before they were shown Coruscant in jaw-dropping moment. Later on, Sakhisa admitted that Taanab was a good idea, for Coruscant was nearly a sensory overload anyway, and Taanab prepared her.

Whatever the real case was, the expedition was halted momentarily on the afternoon of the fourth day, and the ten members of Senika's strike team were let loose into the Pandath Spaceport for a few hours of sightseeing pleasure.

***

_Does every spaceport in the galaxy look exactly the same?_

The thought was as jaded and tired as its owner, a rough, misused looking character surrounded in every direction with ruffians and scourge more tough and beaten than even himself.

The Clone Wars were certainly taking their toll on the galaxy, people on every planet seemed to be thinner, wearier and more fearful looking these days. He was growing up in bad times, that was for sure.

Of course, it was even worse if you were a Jedi.

Keshaiah Midanyl pulled the thick black cloak, with dirty, tattered edges that smelled like sweat and dried blood, more tightly around his body, hiding the slender silver weapon that hung with a heavy, condemning weight at his side. He sunk back slightly further into the shadow of the building, wanting to remain as inconspicuous and unobtrusive as possible.

At eighteen, Keshaiah was wiser and more knowledgeable in the ways of the universe than many beings hope to ever become. He was medium height for his age, with a handsome face, unruly dark hair, and solemn, deep brown eyes that spoke of a full-blooded Corellian heritage. He tended to take a humorous outlook on life, a trait which had grown into a somewhat sarcastic tendency with the difficulties of the past few years, as his Master, Shen Wai, had noted frequently.

He was pushed against a wall in the Pandath spaceport on Tanaab, watching the passing crowd in the marketplace carefully for a comrade he sincerely hoped would make the appointment. One never knew if a Jedi would survive a simple hyperspace trip nowadays.

He sighed and shifted uneasily, trying to get more comfortable.

_Forget it,_ he decided,_ I'm going for a walk around. If Barriss gets here, she can try waiting for a while._

Master Shen Wai was also fond of noting his lack of progress in the skill of patience.

The hood of the Jedi cloak hid almost his entire face, with only his chin visible, but he could see the numerous inhabitants and denizens of the spaceport quite easily. He strolled along, feeling more relaxed now that he was moving, and stretched out curiously with the Force, gleaning little bits of information about the people he passed by.

He felt a strange ripple in the Force suddenly, and turned his head left and right hurriedly, looking for something menacing or dangerous. Yet, calming down seconds later, he realized that the ripple had receded almost instantaneously. It was only like a brief touch of fire, burning the skin for a moment and then leaving only a stinging pain as a souvenir.

***

Senika looked frantically around the market place, trying to catch sight of Relkivik. The dope had scampered off on her, cruelly leaving her to her own devices in a place larger and busier than she'd ever seen in her life. She pulled the sky-blue cloak tightly over her shoulders, feeling very lost, scared, and greatly annoyed.

Determinedly, she started walking in the direction she'd last seen her friend, preparing to give him a good earful when she found him.

A flash of black caught her eye, and she ducked towards it, easily slipping through the mayhem and pressing force of the crowd. It was a testament to her Noghri upbringing that she moved like a wraith, without a sound or disturbance to anyone in proximity, barely stirring the air with her movement. And her reflexes were quick.

So quick in fact, that her hand darted immediately towards the movement of something black to her right side…

***

"Ahah!"

"Dear sweet son of a-!"

Keshaiah was more startled by the speed and stealth of the attack than any pain it caused him. The feel of a firm human hand suddenly grabbing his elbow shocked him so much that his hand went immediately to the lightsaber at his side and he whirled to face his attacker.

Reflex had made him go for the weapon, but common sense overrode it the next millisecond. He stared down at his attacker with an awed curiosity.

A petite young girl, looking about his age, stared back up at him with a combination of shock and interest. She was still clutching his arm, but she seemed to be frozen, embarrassed and intrigued in the same moment.

He, for one, was amazed. Firstly, no one had ever sneaked up on him so easily, or caught him so totally off his guard. Secondly, she was beautiful. It took him a full ten seconds to actually regain control of his senses. By then, she had removed her hand from his arm and was stammering apologetically in a strange, sharp language.

He tilted his head, not able to place the tongue from anywhere, and feeling quite stupid as a result, for he was able to recognize almost any language of the Core Worlds, and a few from the Outer Rim and colonies.

She seemed to realize suddenly that he couldn't understand her, because she inhaled sharply and snapped her mouth shut quickly. Her brow furrowed in concentration, and the next words came out slowly, with a heavy, alien accent to them.

"I am sorry Sir," she said softly, "I … mistook you… someone else…"

Keshaiah recovered his composure, glad she wouldn't be able to see his face because of the hood.

"Never mind, milady," he said, giving her a full Corellian grin, "I am quite unharmed."

The girl seemed to repeat this slowly to herself, pause for a moment, then nodded understandingly.

"I must be off, milady," Keshaiah said regretfully. _Damn you Barriss._ "Good-bye."

The girl nodded again and repeated, "Good-bye."

Then she spun quickly on her heel and vanished back into the crowd without hardly a trace.

Barriss wasn't at the rendevous point when he returned. He sighed in frustration after a look at his chrono. It she wasn't here by now, he had to go back to the ship. Of course, he hadn't really expected them to make it here, but he had been holding onto the hope. Now, he acknowledged with a sense of dread and distaste, they would have to continue on to Coruscant, the next meeting place if this one failed. It was the last place in the universe he wanted to go, but Shen Wai would never abandon Luminara Unduli or her apprentice and Keshaiah would never go onto the Jedi safehouse without his Master.

He dragged his feet slightly, heading back towards the docking ports.

Coruscant. 

Gods, how he hated that planet.

****

Up next: "Chapter Six: The Jewel of the Core Worlds"


End file.
